Motorized vehicles for residential use include small tractors, lawn and garden vehicles, riding lawnmowers, and the like. Such vehicles have an operator's seat attached to a frame, and often include a rollover protection system (ROPS) also attached to the frame. The ROPS may include a rollover cage or a pair of upright members attached to the frame on opposite sides of the seat, and a cross bar connecting the upright members above the seat. The ROPS is designed to reduce the risk of injury to the operator in the event of a vehicle roll over.
FIG. 19 illustrates a conventional lawn and garden tractor 1010 configured as a riding lawnmower that is disclosed in David, U.S. Pat. No. 7,971,984. The tractor has a frame 1012, an operator's seat 1014 mounted on the frame, and a ROPS 1016. The illustrated ROPS is formed from elongate structural members and includes a pair of upright members 1018 foldably attached to lower members 1020 attached to the frame. The upright members 1018 are located on opposite sides of the seat and are joined by a cross bar 1022. The ROPS members may be formed from tubular steel having a prismatic or curved cross section outer perimeter.
The ROPS 1016 is illustrated in its normal operating state with the upright members 1018 in their raised positions. The members 1018 can be folded in a clockwise direction as viewed in the figure to place the ROPS in a lowered, standby operating state for storage or the like.
Motorized vehicles for residential use are used to perform a variety of tasks, including lawn and garden maintenance, snow removal, grading, and the like. It would be desirable to have a tool holder apparatus that enables the vehicle operator to carry portable tools or other items on the vehicle so that the tools or items are on hand when the vehicle reaches a work site. By “tools” it is meant the tools, implements, and goods normally used for lawn and garden maintenance, snow removal, and other home, lawn, and garden tasks. It would be also desirable that the tool holder apparatus not prevent the ROPS from moving between its operating state and its standby state.